Ray Shapero was a very wealthy man who owned a large chain of Drug Stores (Pharmacies) in Detroit in the 1950s. He also had a large collection of Colts. His main concern was "Pristine" condition. The entire collection of Ray Shapero was bought by Robert Petersen, and the engraved guns he had were placed in the NRA Museum. These pristine examples were "leftovers" and sent to auction. When I saw the .32s on GunBroker, I KNEW they were guns from the Petersen Collection, since I recognized the labels affixed to the boxes which I had seen (when I photographed them at the NRA Museum).Finding the invoice was just a fluke when my friend and fellow PACA Member, Joel Gross, told me he had all the letters to S&W, order and shipping records to and from him and Shapero. The numbers matched my two guns that are here and the Pre-37 on its way. I will offer the Pre-37 to Rick Nahas, but if he passes, it will be sold here.
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Terry
SWCA, SWHS, IWLA, NRA
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